Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz

 Wii
  • Publisher: Sega
  • Release Date: Nov 14, 2006
User Score
5.8

Mixed or average reviews- based on 89 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 32 out of 89
  2. Mixed: 29 out of 89
  3. Negative: 28 out of 89
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  1. AndyF.
    Mar 1, 2007
    3
    If you have ever played another monkey ball game, skip this one. If you play this one, it will make you wonder why they had to butcher such a great concept. The standard game has potential, and is fun to control to a point. Bu the boss battles are boring at best, and the levels get too difficult too fast. The fact that you must choose the level you want in between each level really slows If you have ever played another monkey ball game, skip this one. If you play this one, it will make you wonder why they had to butcher such a great concept. The standard game has potential, and is fun to control to a point. Bu the boss battles are boring at best, and the levels get too difficult too fast. The fact that you must choose the level you want in between each level really slows down the game. The game has no pause menu at all and the mini games are just worthless.… Expand
  2. NatalieS.
    Jan 27, 2008
    4
    Between the eye scorching colours, annoying sound fx, inadequate controls, strange games and unoriginal, sonic-like feel, the game proved to be a big disappointment for me. Sega tried to make a sonic-like game and it feels just as such, except without the fun platform games, adventures and good controls. Its level-games strive to resemble Mario Galaxy but when the controls fail to respond Between the eye scorching colours, annoying sound fx, inadequate controls, strange games and unoriginal, sonic-like feel, the game proved to be a big disappointment for me. Sega tried to make a sonic-like game and it feels just as such, except without the fun platform games, adventures and good controls. Its level-games strive to resemble Mario Galaxy but when the controls fail to respond to the user's attempts and the screen spins out at a nauseating speed, you can see just how, well, out of control it is.… Expand
  3. JonathanCarrier
    Aug 7, 2009
    1
    I hate this game most of the mini games aren't fun, the single player manages to be the hardest thing ever and yet the bosses are easy because they actually give you hit me here weak spot arrows as if saying you're stupid. You'll watch as you careen your monkey balls out of control and wonder why it's so bad...well it just is...it just is.
  4. ToddH.
    May 7, 2007
    4
    We bought this specifically for playing together as a family. Unfortuantely, many of the mini games were frustrating for my 9 year old. She said can't we play a game with a normal controller. If you're interested in the minigames, I'd look elsewhere first.
  5. FedorH.
    Dec 19, 2006
    1
    The best game ever made!
  6. HippieB.
    Nov 20, 2006
    1
    This game is so dum even for a hippie like me. The will should come out with much better games then this, it is hard to control the monkey its like trying to find a needle in a hay stake. Just don't buy this game.
  7. LexingtonD.
    Dec 27, 2007
    2
    The controls are absolutely awful, and range from unresponsive to oversensitive. We kept losing our on-screen positions and could not recover. The games were either too short or too long, and the single-player mode was tired after the first few levels. This game has a very overt feel as having been developed for use with the Gamecube controller with the motion controls tacked on The controls are absolutely awful, and range from unresponsive to oversensitive. We kept losing our on-screen positions and could not recover. The games were either too short or too long, and the single-player mode was tired after the first few levels. This game has a very overt feel as having been developed for use with the Gamecube controller with the motion controls tacked on afterwards. This was a free rental for which I am going to pursue a refund or exchange. Just plain terrible.… Expand
  8. CloverG.
    Jan 9, 2007
    2
    The controls on this game are not good. I don't have any problem with the game concept, but you could have the best concept in the world (which this isn't) and if the controls don't work well then the game is useless. BTW, I haven't had any problems with the controls on other Wii games so my problems are not related to Wii setup issues.
  9. SamF.
    Apr 23, 2007
    0
    This game is the worst game I have played on the Wii so far. I cannot believe how Sega have taken one of the most popular and entertaining games from the Gamecube and turned it into the must turgid and disappointing experience it is possible to get on the new and brilliant Wii. It seems to me they have taken the motion sensitive controller and invented ways of using it rather than This game is the worst game I have played on the Wii so far. I cannot believe how Sega have taken one of the most popular and entertaining games from the Gamecube and turned it into the must turgid and disappointing experience it is possible to get on the new and brilliant Wii. It seems to me they have taken the motion sensitive controller and invented ways of using it rather than thinking of ways it can be used to actually improve the game play. 50 minigames? What a joke... they have even ruined perfectly good minigames like Monkey Golf and Monkey Target with convoluted and awkward motion sensitive controls (that hardly work anyway). Avoid like the plague. How the magazines and review sites managed to give it more than zero points is beyond me.… Expand
  10. AllistairP.
    Nov 26, 2006
    4
    Boring, annoying, and frustrating. It controls awful with the Wii. It was kind of a fun Marble Madness throwback with a controller, but with the wii it's unplayable. It might just be a learning curve, but as of right now I don't even want to pick it up again.
  11. MisterT.
    Dec 26, 2006
    0
    Please, do yourself a favor and ignore any positive reviews this game received. It is the worst controlling game I've ever played and easily one of the most frustrating experiences I've ever had with a game.
  12. Carooff
    May 4, 2013
    3
    I have no problems with this game at all apart from the contols. The controls can only be described as abysmal. I found it far to difficult to jump over even the smallest of gaps. Also the way the game never tells you how to do things. I was stuck on the first boss for ages simply because I had no idea what to do. Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz gets such a low mark for these reasons only,I have no problems with this game at all apart from the contols. The controls can only be described as abysmal. I found it far to difficult to jump over even the smallest of gaps. Also the way the game never tells you how to do things. I was stuck on the first boss for ages simply because I had no idea what to do. Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz gets such a low mark for these reasons only, they're that bad. This has to be the worst game I've played for the Wii (I sold my copy on eBay last year and I feel sorry for the poor sod that bought it).… Expand
  13. jakethesnack
    Oct 24, 2013
    3
    The only reason this game gets a three is because the main mode stages are still fun and the music is as awesome as always, but that doesn't save it from having too many minigames and barely any of them being fun i'm pretty sure I only liked 5/50 games, and the boss battles are so pointless and add to that bad controls and it equals the worst Monkey Ball game I ever played.
  14. kirbman101
    Oct 17, 2013
    3
    I loved the first two Super Monkey Ball games for the Gamecube. I was excited to play this game, but ended up returning it within a week.

    This was one of the launch titles for the Wii, and the controls show it. Some of the minigames are nearly impossible to control, and across the game there's a gimmicky over-use of the Wii Remote's motion sensors. All of the fun minigames from 1 & 2    I loved the first two Super Monkey Ball games for the Gamecube. I was excited to play this game, but ended up returning it within a week.

    This was one of the launch titles for the Wii, and the controls show it. Some of the minigames are nearly impossible to control, and across the game there's a gimmicky over-use of the Wii Remote's motion sensors. All of the fun minigames from 1 & 2 are gone, replaced by more, smaller minigames. The most fun minigame for me was Rock-Paper-Scissors, which should give you an idea of the complexity and enjoyment value of the others.

    The graphics weren't bad for their time, but they look very childish.

    The story mode is the only redeeming factor, as it is similar to that of SMB2, but the ability to jump makes most stages too easy. You are forced to use the poorly implemented motion controls for everything, which ruined the experience for me.    … Expand
  15. ReshiramReviews
    May 17, 2014
    4
    I absolutely loved the first two Monkey Ball games for the Gamecube, so I couldn't resist getting my hands on this game. However, I WILL resist to play it now. Why, you may ask?

    The control, the character design, and the party games could be described in 2 words: GOD AWFUL. You tilt the Wii-mote where you want the monkey to go, but you are at the MERCY of the loose control. Also, the    I absolutely loved the first two Monkey Ball games for the Gamecube, so I couldn't resist getting my hands on this game. However, I WILL resist to play it now. Why, you may ask?

    The control, the character design, and the party games could be described in 2 words: GOD AWFUL. You tilt the Wii-mote where you want the monkey to go, but you are at the MERCY of the loose control.

    Also, the jump ability, which I swear was there because SEGA knew that the controls were GOD AWFUL, can literally destroy the challenge of various stages. The jump ability can be finnicky at times, leading to a WHACKLOAD of cheap deaths.

    What doesn't help is the incredibly frustrating boss battles that seem to be there just for the sake of having a boss battle. As bad as the control and camera were in the actual stages, the bosses apply it TENFOLD.

    Those would be the worst part of the game if it weren't for the UNPLAYABLE minigames. Sure, a small few of them are okay, but the rest leaves 20,000 TONS to the imagination, due to the horrendous controls on these minigames.

    In short, Banana Blitz is one of the ABSOLUTE WORST WII GAMES EVER CREATED!!!!!    … Expand
  16. wiireviews
    Dec 30, 2014
    1
    The controls are so awful. I can not believe this game was quality tested. Racing and snowboard games are ok the others are mostly unusable. The Frisbee Golf is one of the most frustrating experiences on the Wii I've ever had.
    A game that could have been okish but is completely spoilt by broken controls.
  17. CarlDaShyGuy
    Mar 15, 2015
    1
    Oh my god. This game is BIN MATERIAL. Do not buy this game. It is THE worst controlling game I've ever played. To say the least, these motion controls are abysmal and they severely drag the game down. Can't even use the nunchuk's control stick. Even when you have 50 unique minigames to play, the different uses of motion controls that can be confusing and mostly untrustworthy make theseOh my god. This game is BIN MATERIAL. Do not buy this game. It is THE worst controlling game I've ever played. To say the least, these motion controls are abysmal and they severely drag the game down. Can't even use the nunchuk's control stick. Even when you have 50 unique minigames to play, the different uses of motion controls that can be confusing and mostly untrustworthy make these minigames unplayable. Believe me when I say this, this game has no redeeming qualities. The boss battles are the WORST aspect of the entire game. The quality of the camera view are brought down to a canyon, plus a lot of the bosses are frustrating, even without the change in quality to the camera. They have no right to exist, and neither does this game due to the worst controls I've ever seen, plus a lack of spohistication, no redeeming value, the story being a ripoff of Super Monkey Ball 2, and this game is literally Sega's WORST game, even worse than crap like Sonic Boom.

    Scores:

    Solo: 1/10
    Multiplayer: 1/10
    Controls: 0/10
    Graphics: 5/10
    Sound: 5/10
    Relpay Value: 0/10

    Final Score: 1/10    … Expand
  18. lilemma420
    Jul 13, 2019
    0
    This game is complete SH!T, The controls don’t fvcking work; it says to do one thing and when I do them the game does the opposite of what it’s suppose to do. A TOTAL FVCKING WASTE OF MY MONEY!
  19. EthanParmet
    Aug 29, 2019
    4
    I wanted to like this game, I really did. I tried to play the main mode, where you use the gyroscope on the wii controller for tilting the ball. For some odd reason, they had us hold the Wii Remote like a TV remote, instead of the way that one would hold it for Mario Kart. This is a problem, as this makes it hard to control, and the controls are overly sensitive. I flailed all over theI wanted to like this game, I really did. I tried to play the main mode, where you use the gyroscope on the wii controller for tilting the ball. For some odd reason, they had us hold the Wii Remote like a TV remote, instead of the way that one would hold it for Mario Kart. This is a problem, as this makes it hard to control, and the controls are overly sensitive. I flailed all over the place. The first 3 levels were way too easy, and then when any hazard came in, everything when whack. The same can be said in the mini-games. This game has some really good elements to it, and I really like certain mini-games and stages, but overall, this game is bad. Not because it has horrible content, but because of a challenging controlling method, and the oversensitivity of the controls in most games make it almost impossible to navigate.… Expand

Awards & Rankings

7
#7 Best Wii Game of 2006
5
#5 Most Discussed Wii Game of 2006
16
#16 Most Shared Wii Game of 2006

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
74

Mixed or average reviews - based on 53 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 32 out of 53
  2. Mixed: 21 out of 53
  3. Negative: 0 out of 53
  1. Electronic Gaming Monthly
    65
    So long as you stick with the multiplayer, this game is a decent monkey-filled ball. [Dec. 2006, p.116]
  2. Play Magazine
    80
    Moreover, Sega's done a fine job translating the control scheme for a game that demands precise movements to a controller that is, at best, imprecise. [Dec. 2006, p.58]
  3. IGN
    84
    If you've been on the fence about the Wii controls, put those fears to rest. True, there is a different technique involved, but once you get the hang of it you will be flying through levels with precision and speed. Now that I've played through Banana Blitz, I would not want to go back to the older control configurations.
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